Watchdog

Protesters in Iran have clashed with police again as some in the western city of Mahabad attempted to occupy government buildings as officials tried to link the demonstrations -- sparked by the death of a young woman while in police custody for allegedly improperly wearing a head scarf -- to a deadly attack on a mosque claimed by the Islamic State militant group.

Footage posted on social media by activists showed large crowds of people surrounding the governor's building on October 27, heaving rocks and other debris at the gates as sporadic gunfire echoes in the background.

The city was on edge after the body of 35-year-old Ismail Moloudi was buried earlier in the day.

Moloudi was killed the day before by officers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps during a protest marking 40 days since 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died while being detained by police. Eyewitnesses say she was beaten by security agents, but the government says she died of "underlying diseases."

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The Hengaw human rights organization said there were reports that some demonstrators in Mahabad had been shot. It was not possible to independently verify the reports.

In another western Iranian city, Khorramabad, hundreds of people gathered near a cemetery where Nika Shakarami -- a 16-year-old died after participating in anti-government protests in Tehran on September 20 -- is buried.

Shakarami went missing in Tehran after telling a friend she was being chased by police.

Amnesty International said Iranian security forces have killed at least eight people since the evening of October 26.

"Iran's security forces killed at least eight people since last night as they again opened fire on mourners and protesters," Amnesty said on October 27, condemning the "reckless and unlawful use of firearms."

As thousands of Iranians descended on October 26 on the cemetery where Amini is buried -- in defiance of warnings from authorities -- an attack claimed by Islamic State killed at least 15 people at a shrine in the southern city of Shiraz.

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U.S. State Department 'Disgusted' By Reports That Agents Abducted Late RFE/RL Journalist's Body

President Ebrahim Raisi on October 27 appeared to link the attack with the protests by saying that "the intention of the enemy is to disrupt the country's progress, and then these riots pave the ground for terrorist acts."

Several leading Iranian officials have blamed the protests on foreign influences, mainly the United States and Israel. They have not shown any evidence to back up their claims.

Meanwhile the scope of the protests continues to widen, with a number of doctors in Tehran holding a rally on October 26 in front of the forensic medicine building.

Reports said 15 doctors were arrested at the gathering, prompting the president and vice president of the Tehran Medical Council to resign.

The government has met the protests with a harsh crackdown that the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights says has left at least 215 people, including 27 children, dead.

Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda, with reporting by AFP

The U.S. State Department expressed disgust over reports that RFE/RL journalist Reza Haghighatnejad’s body has been seized by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and called on Iranian authorities to immediately release Reza’s remains to his family.

“We are disgusted by reports that the IRGC seized Reza's remains as they were repatriated to Iran for burial in his hometown of Shiraz,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement on October 27 released to RFE/RL's Radio Farda, where Haghighatnejad worked from 2019 until his death.

The seizure of Haghighatnejad's body "underscores the degree to which Iran's leadership fears journalists who expose its wrongdoings, even after their death,” the spokesperson said.

“By all accounts, he was a brilliant journalist dedicated to the freedom of speech and uncovering the truth,” the spokesperson said, adding: "We call on Iranian authorities to immediately release Reza's remains to his family and to cease its cruel intimidation of journalists everywhere.”

Haghighatnejad, 45, died of cancer on October 17 at the Charite Hospital in Berlin, and his body was repatriated to Iran for burial on October 25. However, his corpse went missing upon arrival amid unconfirmed reports that agents from the IRGC took it to an unknown location.

Earlier on October 27, Haghighatnejad's mother said Iranian security agents abducted her son's body.

"This is the message of a mother who has not seen her son for six years and was unaware of his illness, and now that his body has returned to Iran, it has been abducted by the authorities at the airport," Beygumjan Raeisi said in a video.

She did not say whether she had official confirmation that her son's body has been taken by security agents. Iranian authorities have not commented on the situation.

Relatives and friends told Radio Farda, where Haghighatnejad worked from 2019 until his death, that the necessary permits had been issued to bury his body in his hometown, the southern Iranian city of Shiraz.

Haghighatnejad left Iran amid increased pressure on journalists and started working with Persian-language media outside the country. He was not able to return to Iran because of his journalistic activities.

Radio Farda also obtained information indicating that his family was being pressured by the government to agree to his body being buried in another cemetery outside of his hometown.

RFE/RL President and CEO Jamie Fly has called the Iranian regime’s treatment of Haghighatnejad's family "disgraceful and disgusting," adding they deserve to bury him without regime harassment.

Haghighatnejad was a prominent analyst and political commentator with Persian-language media inside and outside of Iran. His death came as unrest rocks the country over the death of a young woman while in police custody for allegedly wearing a head scarf improperly.

Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda